Honest Lies
by GiraffePanda2
Summary: It started six months before 'he' escaped, that's when I messed up badly. So now, somehow, I managed to live with the mortal enemy, the 'head' Suit and his wife, who surprisingly makes great cookies. "My teachers say I'm 'misguided'". She's a tall, gangly kid from the streets of NY, with honesty issues. OC!
1. Katherine Rider

**Disclaimer: I don't own White Collar**

**A/N: I should be working on my other stories, but I was inspired by White Collar to write this one. The first two chapters (maybe even three) will be set before the first episode of season 1. Don't worry, Neal will come in. Now, with no further ado, I present to you-  
**

* * *

**HONEST LIES**

"_What's your name?" _

"_Katherine."_

"_You have a last name, Katherine?"_

"_Yes." I tried not to grin when he sighed, obviously a little annoyed._

"_What's your last name?"_

"_...Rider."_

"_Katherine Rider, that your real name?"_

"_Yes, yes it is." I rolled my eyes. "I get it, I shouldn't have stolen your wallet, that should make me a bad person, don't worry. I'm going to think deeply about my actions when I get back to the orphanage."_

~!~

"I'll take 20 bucks for me, ten bucks for Kaden, and 5 for Suzie and then leave 20 for him." I muttered under my breath as I sat on the bench, checking the plain brown leather wallet I had in my hand. I tucked away the money in my pocket and glanced up.

The crowd of people around me didn't pay the slightest attention to me. I clutched my jacket closer around me, and let my body be moved by the crowds. I looked around for my target; he had been wearing a gray suit.

I didn't change my expression when I saw him; instead I got ready to drop the wallet back into his pocket.

It took skill to pickpocket someone. It took even more to un-pickpocket him, meaning giving back the wallet. I had no use for the credit cards, license, or gift cards in there; I only needed some of the cash.

I bumped into him, not saying a word. I kept walking, ignoring his small grumble. He ignored me, and I him.

Simple. As it should be.

And then it wasn't.

As soon as I turned the corner I felt a pull on my wrist. I froze completely, not remembering any of my tips for getting caught. I whirled around, ready to fight.

My mouth had dropped open, my eyes wide. The target, Mr. Gray Suit, had my wrist in his grip, and a slight smug smile. I opened my mouth to protest, or scream when he reached into his jacket and pulled out a badge.

It didn't take long for me to read the giant FBI on it. I didn't dare run, now that he knew my face. I lowered my head and sighed. Thursdays are just not my thing.

~!~

"You're grounded."

"As you can see, I've never left the earth."

"You think this is funny?!"

"Well, I mean, not really, a little bit, maybe-"

"You're more trouble than you're worth! What were you thinking?!"

I didn't answer her, not wanting to tell her my exact thoughts. I made eye contact with the social worker/orphanage lady who was in charge of the teens who lived there. Her neat little bun was falling apart, blonde strands in front of her face. Her eyes were angry, and her lips were colored a light red, too light for me.

I leaned back in my chair, and played a bit my jacket's strings. "Can we go?" I asked her quietly, interrupting her rant on my misbehavior.

She stopped, breathing heavy. "Can we go?" She repeated. "Yes, we can go, I can go. You, however, will be punished so severely that-"

"I will regret the day I was born." I looked at her, meeting her eyes. My expression was one of nonchalantness. I opened my arms a little, "I already do though, so what else do you have?"

I could tell I was just making it worse. I decided to keep my mouth closed. I glanced at my side; a few yards away I could see Mr. FBI, my lovely target, was watching us with an unreadable expression. I forced myself to look away, not wanting to see if there was any pity in them.

Though at the time I had doubted there ever was, I thought any law enforcement would hate kids like me. Runaways, dirty street kids.

I felt the worker, Mrs. Tate, grab my shoulder and force our way out of the building. She had already apologized over and over my actions to the FBI agent. I didn't bother paying attention to anything she said, or what he said after he managed to get the orphanage's number out of me.

It didn't matter, what was important is that I got caught.

And getting caught isn't an option.

Not for me. Not anymore.

~!~

"You just had to tell him your name."

"Shut up Kaden."

"I mean, I get not lying is a big thing, honesty policy and all, but damn girl, this is getting out of hand!"

"Like I said before, shut up Kaden." I moved over a little bit on the couch, and tried not to notice my growing stomach pains. Mrs. Hate-I mean, Tate, sent me upstairs with no dinner.

"We really would've have used the whole 50 bucks though, why'd you leave some for him?" Kaden, the only boy who lived at the orphanage longer than I had, leaned back on the couch next to me. His limbs were sprawled all over the place. He reminded me of Suzie's rag doll.

"We didn't need all of it." I said quietly, looking down at my hands.

"We really need to work on your spice, Rhino."

I punched his arm, hard. "I told you, stop that!" I snapped at him, getting up off the couch.

He just laughed, and waved off my punch. "There's ol' Katty McKatterson!"

I glared at him, and retorted, "Whatever you say, Theodore."

Kaden, aka Theodore Rose Thompson, jolted up, and glared at me. I didn't take on his middle name, because if I did that, he would have really gotten angry.

"Where's Suzie?" He asked, changed the subject before we went too far. We've done that once before, the night I came here.

"Probably downstairs, you know, eating."

He laughed, "Eating? That's for the weenies that actually play by the rules."

I gave him half a smirk. We were notorious for not following the rules. Mrs. Tate had almost given up hope for us. I started walking out the room.

Kaden called out to me, making me stop right before the door. "Get ready; we got potential rents coming in this Saturday." He gave me a sterner look. "Don't blow it, alright? You got a good life ahead of you."

I grinned. "Goodnight, Kaden."

"I mean it Rider! Come Sunday I want your sorry ass gone from here!"

I waved him off, and returned to the room where the rest of the girls slept. I climbed into my creaky old bed, and fell into a dreamless sleep.

~!~

"Well you can always try to see the bright side, you know."

"Shut up, Rider."

I smirked and glanced sideways. "I mean, this is what we always wanted for each other, is it not?" I questioned, looking up at the cracked ceiling.

"It was supposed to be you, stupid."

"I've still got time."

Kaden glared at me, and punched me in the shoulder. "You're really infuriating, you realize that, right?"

I didn't say anything, and shrugged my shoulders instead. My friend groaned and leaned back on the bed.

"I didn't want this." He said, his voice muffled from the arm over his face.

"Don't lie." I whispered. "You should be happy."

"I am!" He said, jolting up. "I'm so happy I might puke, but then every time I look at you, I'm reminded that they chose me, and not you!"

A small smile lit my face. Kaden had gotten picked as a foster kid from the rents that came on Saturday. It was Sunday. He was leaving in a couple hours.

"They seem like nice people, Kaden. Don't mess this up."

"Don't mess it up, what about you?! I saw you sneaking away, you made sure that they wouldn't choose you. You didn't brush you hair-"

"My hair's only an inch longer than yours." I pointed out.

"You obviously didn't shower-"

"Hey!"

Kaden glared at me, "You didn't even show up until they were leaving!"

I tilted my head, "Let it go, Kaden. You're going to go home with them, give up pickpocketing and thieving-" He let out a groan, but I continued, "And live a very boring normal life, with a roof, two parents, and 3 meals a day, or, at least, you should."

He was silent, looking down at his feet. "I don't understand though. Why pick me?" Kaden was tall, gangly, with short brown hair and brown eyes. His nose was broken, and he wasn't the prettiest flower of the bunch. Neither was I, for the matter.

"Just let it go." I said, rubbing his shoulder. "And get the heck outta here, or I'll kick you out myself!"

"You're lying."

Smiling grimly, I told him, "You know I don't lie, Kaden."

"Alright." He said, letting out the longest sigh I've ever heard from him. He stood, getting ready to go pack. He didn't look me in the eye, but instead just shuffled from side to side. "I, um…" Squaring his shoulders, but still with his back turned to me, he finally said, "I'm going to miss you… Katherine."

I surprised him with a hug from behind. "I'm going to miss you too… Theodore."

He groaned, and shoved me away, "Alright, alright, enough with the lovey-dovey stuff, we can't have any more rumors, can we?" He looked at me, grinning. Giving my nose a tweak, he added, "Watch out for Suzie, got it? And the other little ones too."

I watched as he left the room, and as he was walking down the hall, I leaned out and called out, "Hey, at least you won't see my sorry ass anymore!"

He gave me a not-so-nice gesture in return. I laughed, and turned back into the room where all the girls slept. I wiped off the tears that started to roll down my cheeks, and slowly crawled back into the bed.

I'm gonna miss him.

A lot.

~!~

"You've got to stop."

It had been 3 weeks since Kaden left.

"Seriously, Kat, listen to me!"

I missed him a lot, he sent a letter, albeit a short one.

"Katherine Angel Rider you better listen to me now or so help me I will kick you in the mouth."

"My middle name's not Angel."

"Shut up, you imbecile."

I looked up from my spot on the couch. I was curled up in a blanket, trying to conserve energy for the day. Suzie, the smallest of the teens, was standing over me, her hands on her hips. She had golden sunshine hair, and big bright blue eyes. It's a wonder why she hasn't been picked for adoption, or fostering.

"This has to end, now." She ordered, looking down at me. "You can't keep moping, it's been a month!-"

"3 weeks, Suz." I murmured, and curled up deeper.

"I know you miss him, I do too, but what would you think he would do if he saw you now?"

"Probably kick me."

Suzie sighed, "Get up."

"No thanks."

"GET UP YOU LAZY SACK OF BONES!"

I was jolted out of my comfortable spot on the couch, onto the floor. My ears were ringing, and I squinted. I remembered why she wasn't picked. "Jeez Suzie!" I said, getting up. "Was that necessary?"

Suzie, aka the Blonde Banshee, smiled innocently. "I said get up, didn't I?"

"Yeah, you did." I grumbled, rubbing my head.

She bit her lip, looking up at me. "Please, Kat, you need to go out, do something!"

"I'm grounded, remember?" Mrs. Tate was still pissed off that I pickpocketed an FBI agent.

"And whose fault is that?"

"Well if I had to answer-"

Suzie held up a hand, "You'll talk all day about rights and wrongs. Now go out and pickpocket some people. I'm hungry."

"Do it yourself." I said, stretching. I started to walk out. We got a meal a day, us older ones. Pickpocketing helped feed the hungry bellies. It was also a way to blow off steam. I liked to think of it as an alternative to getting high.

"Please, Kat! Just go outside, see the sunshine, smell the sweat, breath the smog-filled air."

"You just love to see me in pain, do you not?"

"You know the answer to that already, Honest Policy."

Honest Policy, another rather stupid nickname. I didn't bother answering her, and traveling down the stairs, and into the great hall. Coats, shoes, and other personal items littered the room. Slowly, so that I didn't alert anyone, I slipped past the open doors. I opened the front door, and slipped out, closing it softly behind me.

I looked up, and noticed that the sun was blocked by several huge rainy gray clouds. I rolled my eyes, "See the sunshine indeed." I muttered to myself. Never the less, I still walked out onto the street, not caring if Mrs. Tate saw me through the window.

Deciding that Suzie was right, I walked on despite the cold atmosphere. I clutched my arms, and let my mind drift.

~!~

"Oof!"

"Oh, sorry!"

I looked up, I had bumped into a woman carrying some groceries. She had knocked me down to the ground. I landed on my butt, and winced. I scraped my hands on the pavement.

"It's my fault actually, I should have been looking where I was going." I mumbled, standing up. There was a bag of fruit lying next to me, and picked it up. I handed it to the woman, stretching my neck. I heard it pop and crack. "No worries, I'll live."

She looked at me with kind eyes, and I realized that I was just as tall as her, if not taller. She had brown hair and a smile on her face. I looked down, "Uh, sorry about the fruit."

"Oh no, its fine, what I'm worried about is your hands. They looked like they're pretty scratched up." Without warning, she shifted her bags and took one of my hands in her own.

I almost yanked it away, but for some reason her presence… soothed me.

She studied my hand, then clucked her tongue. "Yup, you're going to need to get that disinfected.

I took my hand away, "Uh, thanks! But I think I need to get back…" Mrs. Hate-Tate, I mean Mrs. Tate, might have noticed I'm missing.

"Oh, where do you live?"

"I live…" I trailed off, looking around. I didn't recognize any of the buildings. "Um…" I must have wandered too far from the orphanage. I couldn't see any of the street names so I didn't know where I was.

"You know," The woman said, looking at me, "I live right by here, you can come over and I can disinfect your hands." She must have noticed my deer-in-the-headlights look because she added suddenly, "Just for a couple of minutes, of course."

I bit my lip. Giving her a confused look, I stated, "You don't even know me."

She smiled again, stretching out her hand, "Well how about I start? I'm Elizabeth."

I looked at her uncertainly, before grabbing her hand. "Katherine."

~!~

"Nice place." I said, looking around. I shuffled back and forth, wiping my feet on the welcome mat. It had started to sprinkle rain as we walked back to Elizabeth's house.

"Set the bags on the counter, and I'll get the first aid kit." Elizabeth stated, flashing me another kind smile.

I couldn't help but reply, "Yes ma'am." I heard her chuckled as I headed towards the kitchen. I set down the groceries I offered to carry for her. She only let me carry them, after assuring it wouldn't hurt my hands too much.

I walked carefully from the kitchen into the dining room/living room. It was quaint, nice. I clutched the edges of my jacket. It felt like… Almost, like… Home?

I almost let out a laugh. Home? How could I know what that felt like?

Going back to the kitchen, I realized that my stomach was getting especially loud. I managed to console it as we walked here, but I now realized the inevitable.

I was hungry.

I licked my lips, and looked at the apple in the bags of groceries. It had been in the bag of fruit that had dropped to the sidewalk. It was bruised but… I bit my lip and started to reach for it. Pausing, I remembered Elizabeth's kind face and sighed. I let my hand drop and I leaned against the counter.

"Alright, I've got disinfectant, paper towels, antibiotic cream and band aids." Elizabeth suddenly entered the kitchen. I looked around at her, and then she patted the counter. "Hop up, and I'll patch you up."

"I can do it myself, Mrs. Elizabeth." I tried to take the first aid kit from her, "Please, it's not necessary for you to do this."

She nodded her head and kept a firm grip on the supplies. "Please, what kind of person would I be if I didn't help you?"

I lowered my eyes. "I can do it myself."

She looked at me straight in the eyes. "I'm not saying you can't, Katherine. But what's wrong with a bit of help?" She smiled softly.

I didn't look up but hopped up on the counter by her. I could tell it made her happy. I waited patiently, only letting out a 'ouch' every now and then. Soon I was all bandaged up. She had wrapped clean white bandages around my hands to keep the scratches from getting infected.

I let out a little inward sigh. I wouldn't be able to do much pickpocketing with these on. It was like another way of being put into handcuffs. I jumped off the counter and told her, "Thank you so much, Mrs. Elizabeth, but I should head back now."

"Oh honey, are you sure? It's getting worse out there." It was thundering, and every couple of minutes, there had been lightning. The sprinkling had turned into a storm. I glanced at Elizabeth, could tell she wanted me to stay.

With a little pang I shook my head, "Thank you for all you've done but-" I stopped suddenly. My cheeks grew pink.

Elizabeth smiled, "Are you hungry? You should have said something." Of course my stomach had to growl now.

"Uh-" I couldn't say I wasn't. I'd be lying.

"It's raining really hard now, at least stay until it lets up." Elizabeth was the one who wasn't going to let up.

"Yes ma'am." I said, letting my head hang low. She laughed and I chuckled as well.

"While we wait, how about I make you a sandwich or something?"

She didn't know it, but she was just making it worse. I didn't need her help. I mean, it would be nice, but I could survive without it.

"That's not necessary-" I tried to say again, but she stopped me.

"Now, what would your mother think of me if I let you go home hungry?" She asked, getting out ingredients from the fridge. "Speaking of which, do you need to call your mom?"

I let out a little laugh, "No."

She gave me an odd look, "Really? You sure, because you can use the phone."

I shook my head. "Thanks, but I'd actually need a mom to call." Oops.

"Oh I'm sorry, what about your dad then?" Elizabeth asked. I didn't meet her eyes. I didn't want the pity. I didn't need a mom. I didn't answer her, and just shrugged my shoulders.

She didn't press, and I let out a sigh of relief. I watched as she made the sandwich, adding ham and turkey. I think I could've drooled.

I heard the footsteps before the click of the key. I immediately got off of the stool, ready to flee. Elizabeth looked at me, about to ask what was wrong, when we heard the front door open.

"I should go." I blurted out. But I was blocked out by a man calling out, "Elizabeth? I'm home."

I knew that voice.

"Right here, honey." Elizabeth flashed me a smile. "We've got company."

I froze, knowing she meant me. What should I do? What should I do?

He walked in, carrying a briefcase. He kissed Elizabeth on the forehead before noticing I was there.

I could see my own shock and surprise reflected in his eyes. I couldn't speak, my tongue wouldn't work.

He was confused, I could tell. Elizabeth didn't notice. She introduced him to me, "This is-"

"Katherine?" He said, asking to see if he got it right.

I nodded my head in greeting. "Katherine Rider." I swallowed nervously and glanced to the side. "'Sup?"

* * *

**HONEST LIES**

**Katherine is one of my favorite characters. Honestly, I really do have a lot planned for this story. I don't think it'll be much of a plot story. I might just to drabbles, but you can definitely expect story-arcs, and character development!**

**Thank you for reading. Now, please review and tell me if it was any good? Do you like Kaden, Suzie and Katherine? Would you like to see more of the orphanage kids?**

**With that out of the way, it's time to say-**

**-GP2 OUT!**


	2. Susan Francis Murphy

**Chapter 3**

**Disclaimer: I don't own White Collar**

* * *

I was sitting on a very nice couch, in my not-so-nice clothes, petting the head of a big old yellow lab. His name's Sachmo.

I heard Elizabeth and _him _talking quietly in the kitchen. I had moved from the stool to the living room to give them some privacy. I was going to make an escape, but it was still thundering outside. Every muscle in my body was screaming to run, hide, leave, do _anything _than just _sit _there. I made a move to stand up, but before I could take a step, Elizabeth came in.

She offered me a smile, which I returned half-heartedly. I ran my fingers through my messy hair and kept looking down. "I'll go now," I said, still not meeting her eyes. I stepped over Sachmo, heading towards the door.

"Wait."

I stopped, it was _his _voice. The FBI agent's voice. I bit my lip and slowly turned around to look at him. He was standing beside Elizabeth, arm over her shoulder. I could tell that he was very protective of her.

"It's-" He took a moment before setting his shoulders and continuing. "It's still raining, how about you stay. Just until it lightens back up."

Elizabeth nudged him with her elbow and he shot her a look. She returned it with a smile. He sighed and then added, "Would you like to have… dinner with us?"

I panicked.

"Oh, no no no! That's really not necessary! I mean, you've already bandaged my hands-" I lifted them up to show my point, and I began to back away, "So thank you so much for the offer, but honestly-" I froze. I gritted my teeth and then continued, "I'm fine."

"See?" He said, turning to Elizabeth. "She's fine."

Elizabeth huffed before turning her shockingly warm gaze upon me and off her husband. "Please, it would be our pleasure. I insist. Besides, I happen to know for a fact, that you're probably really hungry."

It was that moment when my stomach let out a low growl. My cheeks grew pink and I sighed. I could tell _he _had a corner of his mouth lifted up.

"Alright." I said softly.

"What was that?" She asked, smiling.

I looked up, meeting her eyes and smiled on my own. "Yes." I said louder.

"Great! Now, how about you help me get dinner started?"

~!~

"Alright, now, just add the salt and pepper, and then stir occasionally." Elizabeth said, looking over my shoulder at the pot of mashed potatoes. I nodded and added the salt and pepper.

"So, Katherine…"

I internally winced. Peter, aka, the man who I had pickpocketed last week, was sitting on the counter, studying me. I could tell he was rather reluctant to leave his wife alone with me. It hurt my feelings a little bit, but I would have reacted the same way.

"Does your supervisor know where you are?"

Elizabeth looked up, "Supervisor?"

Before Peter could open his mouth, I answered her. "Mrs. Tate. She's, um, in charge of the older kid's cases." I looked up, meeting her bright blue eyes. "At the orphanage."

I waited for the reaction, the gasp, the shocked look, the pity.

"Oh… Does she know where you are, though?" Elizabeth said, continuing with the salad she was making. She put all different kinds of vegetables into it, cucumbers, yellow peppers, tomatoes.

I bit my lip, wondering how I should answer.

"Katherine," Peter said, tensing up slightly. I turned around to face the both of them. Taking a deep breath, I answered, "Nope."

He raised an eyebrow. "Why not?"

I shrugged my shoulders.

"Hmph." He crossed his arms across his chest.

"Peter, would you please get the plates out?" Elizabeth asked. He nodded and stood up. I could tell he still wanted to ask me questions.

"Katherine, could you help him set the table as well? I think that I can handle everything from here."

I wanted to protest, I _should've _protested, but instead I did as I was told, and quickly found the silverware and placed them on the table. Once the glasses were set on the table, Elizabeth placed the rest of the food on the table and we all sat down.

I could Peter was uncomfortable with me there; I was a _thief, _a _rogue_ to him. I was not supposed to be sitting at his dinner table with his nice and warm wife, in his very nicely decorated house, eating the very delicious plate of food before me.

I took a bite of the mashed potatoes, the one dish I contributed to the meal. Peter hadn't touched his food, but kept looking at me.

"Katherine," Elizabeth said, smiling. She was trying to break the awkward silence. "How old are you?"

I casted Peter a careful look before answering. "I'm 15."

"How long have you've been in the system?" Peter asked.

"Peter!" Elizabeth said, hitting him lightly on the arm.

"Oh no, no, that's fine." I let out a small smirk, "It's a legitimate question." I took a bite of the chicken. I almost let out a moan; it'd been so long since I had chicken. "I was, uh, admitted around…" I pretended to think for a moment. "It was a while ago." I finished, not wanting to go into details exactly.

Luckily for me, they didn't push any further.

"Do you go to school?" Elizabeth asked, after a couple of minutes of silence.

I had taken my last bite of chicken, so I just nodded. I did go to school. Almost.

I could hear the rain settling down. I had to get out of here. It was suffocating me. I didn't belong here, not in a place like this.

I quickly ate the rest of my food. I barely noticed that I actually felt full. I cleaned my plate completely, and stood up quickly. I moved so fast, that Elizabeth and Peter didn't have time to say anything. I removed my plates; utensils and put them in the sink. I took one last gulp of the water (even their _water _tasted better) from my glass and then put that in the sink as well.

"Thank you for your hospitality." I said quickly. I knew that I probably should have stayed, but I should've left earlier. I _really _did not have to be here. I didn't belong here.

_did i?_

I grabbed my jacket from where it had been on the couch and rushed out the door. I didn't even let them say goodbye to me.

~!~

"Where have you've been?!" Mrs. Hate/Tate screeched at me. Her face was red, and she had her shoes on. Was she about to go outside to look for me? Not likely.

"Away from here." I said, growling out my answer. I was soaking wet. Not a single inch of me was dry. Midway on my way back, the rain suddenly started pouring again. I was stuck looking around New York for a familiar sign before I finally found Central Park. I managed to head back from there. I stomped past Mrs. Tate and ran up the stairs. "I'm going to get dressed." I muttered.

"You missed dinner!" She shouted back up the stairs.

"I'm not hungry!" I yelled back before slamming the girl's dormitory door.

Heads shot up, eyes widened and questions started to pour out of their mouths. Suzie didn't look up from where she was playing solitaire. Her hair was perfectly puffed up in blonde curls, and her pajamas looked precious, even though they were the standard grey shirts and gym shorts that they handed out to all residents.

"'M rather not in the mood." I grumbled before peeling off my jacket and throwing it onto my bed. I ruffled my hair; it was at the point where it kept getting into my eyes. I needed to cut it again.

"Bad day?" Suzie asked. Her bed was right beside mine. "Did you get caught again?" Her eyes flickered up and she smiled.

I fell back unto my bed, looking up at the ceiling. I could feel my wet clothes creep into my sheet. Now I would sleep on wet sheets all night.

"Rine." Suzie said. I could hear her slight concern. So small that it was barely resident in her voice.

I didn't look at her, and instead curled up on my side. My dark red shirt was stuck to my skin, my jeans felt heavy. I didn't even bother to take off my shoes.

"Seriously Riny, enough with the dramatics."

"Night Suz." And with that, I simple closed my eyes. Tired to the bone.

~!~

A week passed. I still had barely left the orphanage. Not for lack of trying, believe me. Mrs. Tate had been keeping a closer eye on me than I had been used to. We kept having new rents come in as well. Seems like folks were feeling lonely.

In fact, yesterday, we had an adoption.

"I thought I might find you up here."

"How did it end up like this?"

"That's a very deep philosophical question. I recommend the monks for that."

"Katherine-"

"Suz. Can we just pretend?"

Suzie, dear dear Suzie. With her golden curls, big blue eyes, pink mouth, fair skin. Looked like a real china doll. It had been only a matter of time.

Suzie fell silent and I sat beside her. We were on the roof of the orphanage. I could see the sun setting against the city skyline. "You gonna miss it?"

"Everything!" She blurted out, and then she curled up in a ball, her knees by her chest, and her cheek resting on the top of her right knee.

"First Kaiden-"

"Suz, I'm not going to die if you're not here." I reminded her. I leaned back and tried to ignore the deepening pain in my heart.

Suzie had been adopted yesterday. By a single mother. She had three dogs and two cats. I sure hoped she was nice to Suzie. Four weeks ago, Kaiden was adopted. Now Suzie was leaving as well.

"You're going to get adopted." Suzie said firmly.

I rolled my eyes and then winced. "Please, don't make any promises."

Suzie looked up at me, her eyes tearing up. "Don't cry." I cooed, reaching over and grabbed her hand. "It's not the end, Suz."

"This sucks." She declared. I laughed, and nodded.

"Honey, just wait. Soon this place is going to be a distant memory."

Suzie gaped at me. "How can you say that?" She asked, shocked.

I gave her a rueful smile. "Because it will be. I give it a month, a week tops. You're not going to remember this place."

Suzie shook her head fiercely. "No, no no! I could never forget you, or Kaiden, or Lu-"

"Why hasn't Kaiden written then?"

Suzie was silent for a moment. "What do you mean?" She asked gravely.

I bit back a bitter laugh. "It's been a month since he left. So where are the letters he promised?" I stood up, and stretched. "Face the grit and the gravel," I opened my arms wide, gesturing to the crappy place that was below us. "No one ever wants to remember this place. We cut the ties we had here, we replace out memories with new ones."

"Katherine!"

"Who ever _wanted _to be here, Susan?! Who could ever want to come back here? I wouldn't."

Suzie didn't answer me. "I thought so." I said. I turned on my heel. "Go and pack up, she'll be here soon."

~!~

"Alright, Susan. one last round of goodbyes and then you're off!" Mrs. Tate said brightly. Suzie rolled her eyes, and shouldered her bags. She gave her new mother a side glance before sighing. Down the list she went, hugging each of us carefully. We all murmured our goodbyes to her.

When it came to me, the last person in the line she stopped.

_Smack!_

Suzie's hand was still in the air, and my cheek was sporting a bright red handprint. I worked my jaw, "You can still pack a hit, can't you, Suz?"

"Shut up, you bitch."

My eyes brows rose. "Well do continue, then, sweet angel." I was spiting her further on.

Her face turned red. "You listen to me, and you listen to me, Rine. I _refuse_ to forget about you, alright? You're going to be wrong, got it? I _will _come back here, I _will _write letters and dammit all, you _WILL _GET ADOPTED KATHERINE ANGEL RIDER!"

Everyone was silent.

"My middle name's not Angel."

Suzie cracked a smile and so did I. "Good luck, Susan Frances Murphy." I knocked fists with her, and then gave her a quick hug.

She turned smartly on her heel, a trick she taught me, and continued out the door, and out of my life.

I tilted my head and smiled grimly. "Be careful with that one!" I called out to her new mother. "She may look like a rose, but she's got a lot of thorns."

Her mother, who had perfect blonde hair and small brown eyes smiled. She was the perfect image of a housewife, small and mousy. She gave me a wicked grin and rolled up her shirt. On the side was a tattoo of skull.

"Rock on." I said solemnly.

She nodded and left.

That was the last time I ever saw Suzie. Well, for a while anyway.

~!~

"I need to get out." I muttered.

"Uh, Katherine?"

I turned to look down at the small redheaded boy at my side. He was scared out of his pants-shaky hands, biting of the lip, shuffling feet.

I nodded for him to continue, and after taking a deep breath he told me, "I've got something for you…" He reached into his pocket and pulled out a pamphlet.

"What's this?" I asked, grabbing it. The words blurred and I angrily wiped at my eyes. Tears were lining in my eyes. Again. I gritted my teeth and began to read.

"It's a pamphlet for a circus." The little boy interrupted.

I looked at him, "Why would I-" I froze. "That's rather brilliant, Franklin. Thank you." I gave the boy, Franklin, a smile.

The pamphlet said it started tomorrow at 5, in Winchester Garden Parks. A perfect picking place.

I barely noticed that Franklin had walked away. Or the tears that slowly started to crawl down my face. This was a job that Kaiden and I would have done together, most likely. I wiped the tears again. I didn't want to cry.

Taking a deep breath, I spoke harshly and deliberately. "I _will not _cry."

And so I did not.

* * *

**That's it! No Neal in this one, sorry about that. Actually, Neal won't appear at least two or more chapters ahead. It will follow the the TV show pretty closely, as close as I can. But this is not so much about Neal and Peter as it is about Katherine. And no, Katherine is not Kate. Their names are the same though, I will admit that. But she is referred to as Katherine, Rine, Riny, etc.  
**

**Now on to the very lovely person who reviewed my story! Albeit, it took me a while to translate it, here you go, Meire! PS: For my English fans, my response is in Portuguese. So if you want to know what it is, simply **

**Meire: Neal vai entrar, eu prometo. Mas devo avisá-lo agora, que isso não será principalmente sobre Neal em tudo. Ha, Neal não vai ser uma criança nesta, ele vai ser o seu habitual auto encantador. Obrigada pela revisão! Este capítulo é dedicado a você!**

**With that out of the way, it's time to say-**

**-GP2 OUT!**


	3. Lucy

**Chapter 3**

**Disclaimer: I don't own White Collar.**

* * *

"I think I might hate clowns."

"That would be understandable."

"Can we leave?"

"No." I cast a look down at the little girl with brown curls. Lucy reminded me strongly of Suzie, in the looks department. However, she was timid and mousy in her personality.

I sighed and held out my hand. "Alright, Lu, let's head out then."

Lucy grabbed my hand immediately. We walked down towards the circus. I could hear the screams and shouts of little children, the laughing adults. The smell of roasted peanuts and cotton candy filled my nose.

"Woman in the red hat, to our left." I whispered down to Lucy. I wore a cheerful smile on my face as did Lucy.

I could see her eyes narrow and trace the target. I felt a shiver go up my spine and a slight guilty feeling came over me. I shook it off and 'accidently' let go of Lucy's hand.

She started to skip off, towards Ms. Red Hat. Once she was in the near vicinity of the target, I started to call out her name.

"Lu, Lu!" I sang out, a picture of a slight distressed older sibling, "Come back!"

'Lu' bounced over to the Red Hat and fell down right in front of her. I waited patiently until she began to help Lucy up before stopping close by. I snuck my hand into her jacket pocket. Before she could notice, I quickly grabbed her wallet and slipped it to Lucy, who held it behind her back as she hid behind my legs.

"Oh, thank you for helping her up!" I said, giving the woman a gentle smile.

"It was no problem." She told me back in a sweet voice. "It's fine! She's not hurt is she?"

"_Oh no, its fine, what I'm worried about is your hands. They looked like they're pretty scratched up." _

I shook my head, "You're alright, right Lucy?"

Lucy shot me an odd look, and I nearly cursed myself. I had said Lucy, when I wasn't planning on saying her name when we were around the target. It could lead to complications. Lucy smiled and answered anyway, "I'm all good, Kat." She wrapped her arms around my legs, the picture of adorable. She had already hidden the wallet in the back of her pants.

Ms. Red Hat smiled and then left, waving goodbye to us.

"What's wrong?" Lucy asked, tilting her head to the side. Her little mouth was curved to a frown and her bright blue eyes held more questions.

I got hit by the sudden image of Elizabeth's blue eyes and warm smile.

"Let's just go, okay? Some more training, hm?"

Lucy pouted. Crossing her arms, she said, "I'm hungry. Can we get some dinner?"

"_Would you like to have… dinner with us?"_

"No!" I whispered harshly. Lucy looked taken back and then I quickly shook my head. "Uh, sorry, Lu. I'm, uh…" I ran my fingers through my hair. "It's…" For the first time, I realized that I didn't have a truthful answer.

I felt her lace her small fingers through my calloused ones. "How about we just head back, okay?" I didn't look down, for fear of being reminded of Elizabeth. A sudden ache started in my chest that surprised me greatly.

"Let's go."

* * *

"Antonio wants to see you."

Those words could never mean well.

"Tell Antonio he can just shove it in his a-"

"Ah, my darling Kate!"

I looked up. Antonio was a 6"0 dark skinned man with a British accent. His 'friend' otherwise known as the personal bodyguard 'Greg', stood beside him. He was the one that spoke first to me.

I leaned back on my park bench, a half-eaten sandwich in my hands. "Why are you here, Antonio?"

He grinned and sat next to me. "Always straight to the point. No finesse in you, Kate."

His bodyguard, 'Greg' walked aways a bit, no doubt to be a lookout.

"Could you get to the point?" I said wearily. I suddenly lost my appetite.

"I am in need of your expertise." I casted him a side look.

"_My expertise? _" I repeated. "Sorry, but didn't you hear? Apparently I've lost my 'stuff'." I clenched and unclenched my fists. "I don't know how much use I'll be to you." There was a rumor going around that since I've lost my partners (Kaiden and Suzie) I've been lacking in skill.

Antonio was a thief. A mastermind hidden by bodyguards and clever traps that always pointed to someone else. I was a rogue; my expertise wasn't as well-known as his.

"I'm not interested in being a scapegoat, Antonio."

"Kate, dear, I could never make you a scapegoat!" He showed me a cheerful smile that held lies between the cracks of his shining white teeth. "I just need you to do a little… extracting for me."

I raised an eyebrow. "Antonio, I know we go back a ways but…" It was true, I knew Antonio for a while, before he got really into thieving. "Why would you choose me? I'm-"

"Invisible." He supplied. "An orphan, foster kid. Not of importance." The smile he gave me drew shivers down my spine, despite the warm and sunny afternoon. "And that, Kate, is why I need you."

I stood up, ready to leave. "No thank you, Antonio."

"You're itching."

I paused, my back turned to him.

"I can see it in your hands, they keep twitching. And your eyes, shifting sideways constantly. You may not want to face it, but you _need_ this job." He had stood up; I could hear him standing right behind me.

"So… Can I count on you?"

* * *

"You so owe me."

"That I do, Kate darling that I do."

I scowled, slipping on my gloves. "I mean, seriously, I want a bigger cut." I eyed Antonio distrustfully.

"Don't trust me, darling?"

"You should know that by now, Antonio." I laced up my boots. I glanced down at myself when I was finished.

"And what's that, Kate?"

I was wearing all black, light boots with good grip, and skin tight gloves. Barely an inch of skin was showing. Kaiden would joke and say that this was my 'cat suit'. I swallowed back tears and looked up at Antonio. "I don't really trust people."

The plan was solid. Antonio's men would drop off the package in a not-so secure location. I would wait there and we'd switch packages. While they went on ahead with the fake package, I would take the real one and drop it off to Antonio.

In reality, it was just a precaution. I didn't _need _to be there.

_So why was I?_

I glanced at Antonio. I needed answers. I glanced down. My hands were twitching every couple of minutes, my feet were bouncing. It was like a drug, the adrenaline. I needed it.

Breathing in deeply then exhaling it slowly, I turned around and stretched my limbs. I would need to be quick and silent. I looked down at the 'package'.

It was a black backpack, nondescript. When I lifted it up to test the weight, I was surprised to find it was filled with…

"A picnic?" I looked at Antonio for answers.

He shrugged his shoulders, "Finesse darling, all about the details."

* * *

It was all about the details.

_I knew that this was a bad idea,_ I thought to myself as I watched a man get murdered.

* * *

**Hi! Sorry no Neal in this story, I've been thinking about ti and he won't come in for a while. 3 or 4 more chapters. I've got to get Kate into the Burkes household first. :) Don't worry though, I'm currently in the process of figuring out all the things for this story. **

**Reviews:**

**chicca01: Aw, thank you! I'm trying to work very hard on this story. Yeah, El is my favorite character, and I loved the idea of her as a mother. THnak you for your review!**

**guest (1): Thank you! I will most certainly keep going. :) Thank you for your review!**

**Meire: Você é bem vindo! Obrigado rever novamente, isso significa o mundo para mim! Kaiden e Suzie vai voltar, mas eles não estão em apuros. As adoções são sólidos, mas eu não ter planejado tão longe, então eu estou pensando que talvez um deles fica em apuros. Talvez, o que você acha? Beijos. Além disso, uma pequena pergunta, você fala Português e Inglês? Ou apenas um, eu tenho notado que você está opiniões são em Português. Eu estou respondendo a sua opinião em Português, mas eu estou usando o Google Translate para obter ajuda.**

**guest (2): I've had this idea floating in my mind for a while. Thank you for reviewing!**

**reader82: I will continue, I've got ideas for this story!**

**With that out of the way, it's time to say!-**

**-GP2 OUT!**


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